Okay, maybe we are being overly dramatic – but we don’t think so. What’s really happening is less of a turf war and more of a pumpkin-carving contest for charity, and some of the country’s better-known craft breweries will be participating. The New Belgium crew initiated the challenge, inviting their peers to put their carving knives to their pumpkins for bragging rights and a chance to have $5,000 donated to their favorite charity. Unfortunately, even good things can turn ugly – and knowing the parties involved here – we worry.

In addition to New Belgium, the other breweries participating in this first-ever national craft brewery carving contest include: Delaware’s Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, New York’s Brooklyn Brewery, Florida’s Cigar City Brewing, New England’s Cambridge Brewing Company, Michigan’s Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales, and Missouri’s Schlafly Beer.

Asked to assess the competitor’s chances, Tom Bobak, the Editor-In-Chief of American Craft Beer, was brutally honest. “Dogfish Head seems to think that they own these kinds of things, but I think they shouldn’t take too much for granted. And even though urbanites like Brooklyn Brewery and Floridians like Tampa’s Cigar City aren’t generally associated with pumpkin-carving skills, they shouldn’t be overlooked,” he continued. “Unfortunately, I think Jolly Pumpkin’s name could work against them,” Bobak added, “and New Belgium (who has been accused of vote-tampering in these kinds of things in the past) bears close watching. There are a lot of smart people at Cambridge Brewing Company, but we’ll have to wait and see if that translates to carving pumpkins,” Bobak mused, “and as always, Schlafly’s a wild card.”

Expect this to be an epic competition. Some in the craft beer community (who asked to remain anonymous) have expressed great concerns that this is the kind of competition that could rip away the fragile veneer of craft beer camaraderie and has the potential of dividing the industry deeply. “These are highly competitive people that have all made great names for themselves brewing award-winning beers,” some have suggested privately. “They all intend to dominate this carving competition and some will stop at nothing to make certain their pumpkin wins.”

You can go to New Belgium’s Craft Carve Off to check out each brewery’s competing pumpkins. Public voting for the favorite begins October 3 and runs through October 15 at Eater.com. New Belgium will donate $5,000 to a charity of the winner’s choice.